Street-network Sprawl in Tanta, Egypt

What is Street-network sprawl?

Street-network Sprawl is a way to measure urban sprawl, worldwide, through the connectedness of the streets. Less sprawl means more connected, more walkable streets. Well-connected streets – like New York City’s grid – are more walkable and can be served by public transit.

The street network is permanent, and its connectivity affects the livability and environmental footprint of cities for decades and centuries to come. In places with more connected streets, residents drive less and walk more. A well-connected street network is associated with better outcomes for health, the environment, sustainable consumption, social integration, and equity.

We can quantify how connected street networks are with the Street Network Disconnectedness Index (SNDi).

SNDi -- our measure of street-network sprawl (disconnectedness)

The SNDi is a comprehensive measurement of “sprawl”. It captures:

A higher SNDi means less-connected streets – i.e., more sprawl. For the 10137 cities in our dataset, the average SNDi is 2.25, with half of the cities' SNDis falling between 1.08 and 3.25.

More information on the sprawl index can be found in these research papers:

To see the state of street-network sprawl across the globe, visit the sprawlmap.

Tanta: city in Al Gharbiyah, Egypt

What exactly constitutes the spatial extent of the city? For these aggregations, we used the Global Human Settlement Layer Urban Center Database (GHS-UCDB) to define the boundaries of the city. These cities -- or urban centers -- cover areas that are densely populated and built-up, and so may extend beyond the spatial borders of these cities that we may be familiar with. The GHS area is shaded in blue.

View Tanta, Egypt on the sprawlmap

Most recent snapshot: Taking into account the entire (i.e. aggregate) street network in Tanta as of 2014, the overall level of street-network sprawl is 3.5, which is highly disconnected.

Trends in street network construction: The SNDis of street construction for the respective time periods are 3.16, 5.16, 7.98 and 6.77. Street construction in Tanta increased in disconnectivity initially but has since improved. The streets constructed in 1991-2000 were the most disconnected.

Quantity of street network construction: The street network in Tanta spans a total of 891 kilometers. It is dominated by roads constructed prior to 1975. These roads have an SNDi of 3.16, which is in the 40th to 60th percentile of disconnectedness.

Effect on the aggregate network: New construction in each period adds to the total stock of streets, but does not change streets that have already been built. Therefore, it has a limited effect on the street network as a whole. The SNDis of the aggregate street network in the respective time periods are 3.16, 3.37, 3.37 and 3.5. Overall, the SNDi of the aggregate street network has risen: the street network in Tanta has become more disconnected. This increase has slowed: between 1975 and 1976-1990, SNDi rose by 0.21 points, but between 1991-2000 and 2001-2014, it rose by just 0.13.

Tanta and Al Gharbiyah do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Tanta peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Al Gharbiyah followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

How do development practices in Tanta fare in comparison to others in Al Gharbiyah? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Tanta was the 2nd-most disconnected out of the 12 cities in Al Gharbiyah. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Al Gharbiyah, street construction in Tanta has become more disconnected. Tanta ranked 6th in 1975, 2nd in 1976-1990, 2nd in 1991-2000 and 2nd in 2001-2014.

Tanta and Egypt do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their street network constructions. The SNDi in Tanta peaked in 1991-2000, while the SNDi of street constructions in Egypt followed a zig-zag trend with an overall increase.

How do development practices in Tanta fare in comparison to others in Egypt? Most recently in 2001-2014, street construction in Tanta was the 23rd-most disconnected out of the 170 cities in Egypt. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Egypt, street construction in Tanta has become more disconnected. Tanta ranked 81st in 1975, 40th in 1976-1990, 9th in 1991-2000 and 23rd in 2001-2014.

Tanta and Al Gharbiyah follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi for both of these rose steadily.

To date, Tanta is the 6th-most disconnected out of the 12 cities in Al Gharbiyah. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has not changed. Tanta ranked 6th in 1975, 7th in 1976-1990, 7th in 1991-2000 and 6th in 2001-2014.

Tanta and Egypt do not follow the same trend in the disconnectivity of their aggregate street networks. The SNDi in Tanta rose steadily, while the SNDi of street constructions in Egypt was at its lowest in 1976-1990.

To date, Tanta is the 77th-most disconnected out of the 170 cities in Egypt. Its position in the ranks since 1975 has risen; relative to other cities in Egypt, the street network in Tanta has become more disconnected. Tanta ranked 81st in 1975, 78th in 1976-1990, 81st in 1991-2000 and 77th in 2001-2014.

As of 2015, Tanta had a built-up area of 28.13 square kilometers, and a population of 779681 people.

These are some other cities with approximately the same population: